Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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433. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality when all sections of the Children and Families Relationships Act 2015 will be commenced; and the timeframe for full commencement. [35852/17]

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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586. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide a progress report on the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015; the sections of the Act that have been commenced; when all sections of the Act will be commenced to allow a same sex couple to both assume parentage of their child from birth; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36535/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 433, 454 and 586 together.

The Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 was enacted on 6 April 2015 and the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 (Commencement of Certain Provisions Order) 2016 (S.I. No. 12 of 2016) commenced the bulk of the Act with effect from 18 January 2016. That Commencement Order brought provisions of Parts 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12 and 13 of the Act into operation.

Part 10 of the Act, which amended the Passports Act 2008, was commenced by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade on 1 July 2015.

Parts 2 and 3 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 provide for parentage through donor-assisted human reproduction (DAHR). The issue of the recognition of parentage for same-sex couples and their children is dealt with under Part 2 of the Act. The Minister for Health has responsibility for Parts 2 and 3 of the Act. It was indicated during the passage of the Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015 through the Dáil and the Seanad that an appropriate transition period for these Parts would be required in order to carry out significant preparatory work to facilitate a seamless transition to the new regulatory framework laid out in the Act. Detailed work on Parts 2 and 3 is underway and it is intended that these will be commenced later this year.

Other provisions of the Act which relate to DAHR have not yet been commenced as they are linked to Parts 2 and 3. The commencement of the provisions of the Act which are related to Parts 2 and 3 will be co-ordinated with the commencement of those Parts.

Part 9 of the Act provides for a number of amendments to the Civil Registration Act 2004. No provision of Part 9 has yet been commenced. Some sections cannot be commenced until Parts 2 and 3 are brought into operation. Other sections are dependent on provisions of the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 being commenced and my Department is liaising with the Department of Social Protection in relation to scheduling the commencement of these sections.

Part 11 of the Act in relation to adoption has not been commenced. Other provisions of the Act that are linked to Part 11 have also not been commenced. Adoption policy is the responsibility of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. The Adoption (Amendment) Act 2017, which was recently signed into law, provides for the repeal of Part 11 of the 2015 Act. The provisions in Part 11 allowing for cohabiting couples and civil partners to adopt have been included in the 2017 Act.